Got out to see Joker: Folie à Deux tonight, the sequel to the massive hit Joker from a few years ago. Bringing back star Joaquin Phoenix as Arthur Fleck/The Joker, this film picks up where the last film ended. Joker has been in Arkham Asylum for 2 years while the state tries to decide if he is competent to stand trial for 5 murders he committed in the first movie, or if he is too bat-shit crazy.
Fleck is pretty nuts, which is obvious to the viewer, especially knowing the trauma he faced as a child, all of which we learned in the last movie. His defense team has been building a case of split personality, but prosecutors want to nail him for the murders and insist that he is aware of all of the crimes he has committed. The jail guards are pretty rough with him too, and it seems Fleck can’t get a moment’s rest anywhere he goes. Outside the jail and courtroom, “the Joker” has gained quite the following, with nuts and crooks celebrating his name and creating a persona of an anti-hero out of him, a man willing to stand up against the establishment. Fleck seems pretty oblivious to all the attention, but he does have eyes for one person: Harley (“Lee,” as he calls her) Quinzel, portrayed by Lady Gaga. Lee is also in Arkham, she says because she burned down her parents’ house after her father abused her for years. Arthur falls in love-at-first-sight with Lee, who has a crazy streak to match his.
The state decides Fleck is able to stand trial, and it commences. As the film shifts to a courtroom drama, Lee roots for Arthur from the seats, quietly calling for him to let his Joker persona free and take command of the proceedings, something that his “fans” in the courtroom and outside demonstrating in front of the building all want as well. Along the way, we get a deeper look into the mental illness that consumes Arthur’s life.
This movie is bombing at the box office and getting middling- to downright-poor reviews in the process. However, I loved it. Sometimes I can chalk bad reviews up to either, 1) real critics don’t always know an entertaining film when they see one, or 2) “average filmgoers” can’t recognize a good film when it comes along. This movie seems to be getting nailed from both sides though! The only thing I can guess is that people aren’t digging that it is a musical, and it is a true musical. I myself love a good musical, so the idea of characters stopping to break out in song once in awhile doesn’t bother me at all. I thought the acting was brilliant (expected from Phoenix, but surprisingly good from Gaga too, the first time I’ve been impressed by her on screen) and the story was intriguing. I was rooting for the antihero Arthur Fleck, who has gone through hell to (hopefully) reach some level of redemption by the end, or at least become comfortable with himself as a human being. ★★★★
Jons Movie Takes 